Overview

The 1,040-seat Arcadia originally opened on 4th November 1927 as an Atmospheric style theatre, designed by architect W. Scott Dunne. Built for just $95,000, the theatre put another 50% into equipment including top of the line Simplex projectors, Brenkert spotlights, dual-dissolving lantern projection for pre-show, and a large Renter 12-pipe organ with echo organ and a multitude of instruments.

The Mediterranean garden themed atmospheric interior was punctuated with six different colors of chairs (orchid, cafe-au-lait, green, Chinese Red, sky blue, desert sand and black) to add to its creative flair. Wrought iron was found everywhere from lighting fixtures to mirrors to poster frames to railing. The rustic tree stump sign out front was another quirky calling card supported by railroad ties and featuring a high-tech one-line scrolling text attractor.

The Arcadia was partly destroyed by fire in the early 1940s, and the auditorium was gutted, but the house was rebuilt in 1941 to the plans of architectural firm Pettigrew & Worley, in the Art Moderne style.

After closing it was in use as a nightclub. The building was destroyed by a fire in June 2006 and subsequently demolished.

Information sourced from Cinema Treasures .